Francis Berger's Blog, page 128
April 8, 2020
Leftists Will Regret Winning the Culture War
Though it pains me to say it, the time to acknowledge the Left's ultimate victory in the so-called 'culture war' has come.
Denial offers no gains. Rationalization inspires no one. The eternal spring of hope for victory on this front has run dry.
Ladies and gentlemen, when it comes to the 'culture war' in this world, we have been defeated - and roundly, too.
True, there is shame in concession, but it is better to feel shame than be tempted into delusion. We on the losing side must remain aligned with Reality - delusion is enemy territory; as such, we must allow it to remain firmly within enemy control.
Though difficult to do, we must relinquish the world to Left. We must be prepared to cede all of our worldly territory and yield all of our material riches. Let them have it. It will satiate their illusions of having achieved their objectives.
Yes, the Left is triumphant - the whole lot of them. That far-ranging spectrum of secularism, reductionism, materialism, humanism, positivism, atheism, and all the rest of it. Their legions run the gamut of our rapidly perishing societies - from the hungry-eyed communist to the cologne-scented financier and everything in between.
Of course, the Left greets such sweeping generalizations with scorn. "We are not one," the cry out as they celebrate. "It is they who are of the Left. Us? We are something different. And we will prove it by continuing the campaign until we, until our side, truly wins."
We, the vanquished, know better. Only two sides exist. On one side stands God's Loving Creation: Truth, Beauty, and Goodness. On the other, their opposite.
Either you are with Him, or you are against Him. And if you are against Him, you are of the Left. All else is wishful thinking. Soap bubbles. Nonsense.
The Left has won the culture war. Their System has succeeded. They now possess everything. And through that, they will learn they possess nothing, but have instead themselves become possessed.
The Left's victory in the material reveals their ultimate loss in the spiritual, for without the spiritual, the material is meaningless, and this meaninglessness is now their burden.
The System they have so painstakingly created will now consume itself. The Left's legacy will ultimately be one of self-defeat. And that is why we must relinquish any hold we may have on the material for now. We must render onto Caesar what is Caesar's. In the end it won't matter. The Left's daggers will find Caesar soon enough.
The only war that really matters and the only true victory to be had is spiritual. Without this victory the material is not worth having, as the Left will soon discover.
Our hope resides in spiritual victory and our faith in spiritual gain. Fear and despair fuel the culture war while the spiritual war is waged through conviction and love.
Evil lacks the weapons to defeat us on the spiritual battlefield. Nothing it hurls at us can penetrate our armor. The only thing Evil can do is tempt us to fall on our own swords. The only victory it can have is our own pointless and needless surrender.
The Left has won the culture war and will thus lose all semblance of culture. Our task now is to remain aligned with Reality and fortify ourselves with faith, hope, and love.
Another culture will be required when the Left loses the culture they have won - and it will become our duty to create that culture, one soul at a time.
Starting with our own.
Denial offers no gains. Rationalization inspires no one. The eternal spring of hope for victory on this front has run dry.
Ladies and gentlemen, when it comes to the 'culture war' in this world, we have been defeated - and roundly, too.
True, there is shame in concession, but it is better to feel shame than be tempted into delusion. We on the losing side must remain aligned with Reality - delusion is enemy territory; as such, we must allow it to remain firmly within enemy control.
Though difficult to do, we must relinquish the world to Left. We must be prepared to cede all of our worldly territory and yield all of our material riches. Let them have it. It will satiate their illusions of having achieved their objectives.
Yes, the Left is triumphant - the whole lot of them. That far-ranging spectrum of secularism, reductionism, materialism, humanism, positivism, atheism, and all the rest of it. Their legions run the gamut of our rapidly perishing societies - from the hungry-eyed communist to the cologne-scented financier and everything in between.
Of course, the Left greets such sweeping generalizations with scorn. "We are not one," the cry out as they celebrate. "It is they who are of the Left. Us? We are something different. And we will prove it by continuing the campaign until we, until our side, truly wins."
We, the vanquished, know better. Only two sides exist. On one side stands God's Loving Creation: Truth, Beauty, and Goodness. On the other, their opposite.
Either you are with Him, or you are against Him. And if you are against Him, you are of the Left. All else is wishful thinking. Soap bubbles. Nonsense.
The Left has won the culture war. Their System has succeeded. They now possess everything. And through that, they will learn they possess nothing, but have instead themselves become possessed.
The Left's victory in the material reveals their ultimate loss in the spiritual, for without the spiritual, the material is meaningless, and this meaninglessness is now their burden.
The System they have so painstakingly created will now consume itself. The Left's legacy will ultimately be one of self-defeat. And that is why we must relinquish any hold we may have on the material for now. We must render onto Caesar what is Caesar's. In the end it won't matter. The Left's daggers will find Caesar soon enough.
The only war that really matters and the only true victory to be had is spiritual. Without this victory the material is not worth having, as the Left will soon discover.
Our hope resides in spiritual victory and our faith in spiritual gain. Fear and despair fuel the culture war while the spiritual war is waged through conviction and love.
Evil lacks the weapons to defeat us on the spiritual battlefield. Nothing it hurls at us can penetrate our armor. The only thing Evil can do is tempt us to fall on our own swords. The only victory it can have is our own pointless and needless surrender.
The Left has won the culture war and will thus lose all semblance of culture. Our task now is to remain aligned with Reality and fortify ourselves with faith, hope, and love.
Another culture will be required when the Left loses the culture they have won - and it will become our duty to create that culture, one soul at a time.
Starting with our own.
April 7, 2020
Jakub Rozalski's Fantasy/Concept Art
I'm not a huge fan of fantasy/concept art, but this artist's work really struck a chord with me when I stumbled upon it a few days ago. 
April 5, 2020
Nothing But Blue Skies - Another Sign The Global Economy Has Come to a Standstill
Well, it seems an approaching comet is not the only ominous sign in the sky at the moment.
I happened to look up at the sky as my son and I were out walking in the fields around my village yesterday afternoon. Normally the sky above my settlement looks something like this:
Though the surface vehicle traffic around my rural settlement is rather light, the airplane traffic above has always been busy. Vienna to the west is a mere 80 kilometers away; Bratislava to the north, about 50; and Budapest to the east, 200. Those three cities probably host a fair share of the air traffic that zoomed above my village on a daily basis, but I imagine most of the planes and trails headed to even more distant destinations.
In any case, as I was walking in the bright sunshine with my little boy, I looked up at the sky and noticed that it was very similar to this:
An untarnished, azure blue ceiling decked with puffy clouds and a brilliant, shining sun. No contrails or vapor trails anywhere. Not one. This made me pause for a moment. I considered a possibility - perhaps atmospheric conditions were not conducive to the formation of lasting contrails.
As I thought about this, I looked back above me to see if I could spot any airplanes. Before the crisis and lockdown, you could easily observe at least a half-dozen or more planes streaking through the sky at any given time. Sometimes the number got as high as fifteen or more, but yesterday I saw only two. Even more interesting, none came to take their places once those two planes had vanished from view.
For the first time in my living memory, the sky above me was free of planes; and it remained that way for the rest of our walk, which was about a half-an-hour or so.
I'm not pretending to reveal a great discovery here. All I am doing is pointing out the obvious. In our current lockdown, reduced air traffic, the utter collapse of the tourism and travel industry, and all the rest of it is to be expected. The media has run many reports about all of this on television and in the papers. I myself knew this would be an immediate consequence of the worldwide lockdown - but seeing the unmarred blue sky yesterday really helped me put it all into perspective personally.
The global economy has fallen off a cliff. Anyone who makes any sort of case for an expected v-shaped recovery in a few weeks time is either utterly deluded, horribly corrupted, or irredeemably dishonest (or a combination of all of the above)!
As far as the global economy is concerned, blue skies are now a sign of impending doom.
Ironically enough, within this context the song Blue Skies takes on a new and rather unexpected dimension. Blue skies smilin' at me
Nothin' but blue skies do I see
Bluebirds singin' a song
Nothin' but blue skies from now on
I never saw the sun shinin' so bright
Never saw things goin' so right
Noticing the days hurrying by
When you're in love, my how they fly by
Blue days, all of them gone
Nothin' but blue skies from now on
Blue skies smilin' at me
Nothin' but blue skies do I see
Blue days all of them gone
Nothin' but blue skies from now on
Blue skies smilin' at me
Nothin'…
I happened to look up at the sky as my son and I were out walking in the fields around my village yesterday afternoon. Normally the sky above my settlement looks something like this:
Though the surface vehicle traffic around my rural settlement is rather light, the airplane traffic above has always been busy. Vienna to the west is a mere 80 kilometers away; Bratislava to the north, about 50; and Budapest to the east, 200. Those three cities probably host a fair share of the air traffic that zoomed above my village on a daily basis, but I imagine most of the planes and trails headed to even more distant destinations. In any case, as I was walking in the bright sunshine with my little boy, I looked up at the sky and noticed that it was very similar to this:
An untarnished, azure blue ceiling decked with puffy clouds and a brilliant, shining sun. No contrails or vapor trails anywhere. Not one. This made me pause for a moment. I considered a possibility - perhaps atmospheric conditions were not conducive to the formation of lasting contrails.As I thought about this, I looked back above me to see if I could spot any airplanes. Before the crisis and lockdown, you could easily observe at least a half-dozen or more planes streaking through the sky at any given time. Sometimes the number got as high as fifteen or more, but yesterday I saw only two. Even more interesting, none came to take their places once those two planes had vanished from view.
For the first time in my living memory, the sky above me was free of planes; and it remained that way for the rest of our walk, which was about a half-an-hour or so.
I'm not pretending to reveal a great discovery here. All I am doing is pointing out the obvious. In our current lockdown, reduced air traffic, the utter collapse of the tourism and travel industry, and all the rest of it is to be expected. The media has run many reports about all of this on television and in the papers. I myself knew this would be an immediate consequence of the worldwide lockdown - but seeing the unmarred blue sky yesterday really helped me put it all into perspective personally.
The global economy has fallen off a cliff. Anyone who makes any sort of case for an expected v-shaped recovery in a few weeks time is either utterly deluded, horribly corrupted, or irredeemably dishonest (or a combination of all of the above)!
As far as the global economy is concerned, blue skies are now a sign of impending doom.
Ironically enough, within this context the song Blue Skies takes on a new and rather unexpected dimension. Blue skies smilin' at me
Nothin' but blue skies do I see
Bluebirds singin' a song
Nothin' but blue skies from now on
I never saw the sun shinin' so bright
Never saw things goin' so right
Noticing the days hurrying by
When you're in love, my how they fly by
Blue days, all of them gone
Nothin' but blue skies from now on
Blue skies smilin' at me
Nothin' but blue skies do I see
Blue days all of them gone
Nothin' but blue skies from now on
Blue skies smilin' at me
Nothin'…
No One Really Knows What Is Going On
I confess - I don't really know what's going on, at least not at the level of specifics; and I am convinced no one else does either. Having spent a considerable amount of time over the past few weeks trying to piece together my own intuitions, the observations of others, and the tidal wave of information saturating the media, I have managed to reach the following conclusion - everyone has lost the plot (assuming there was ever an overarching, cohesive plot to begin with).
Regarding what has already transpired, I am certain only of the following:the spiritual war has become a hot war; one that has been initiated by and is being fueled by evilevil has forced these events upon the world, which means the events themselves are not fundamentally Good.Good can arise from current events, but that still does not make what is happening now fundamentally Goodone goal of the spiritual war was the spiritual devastation of churches in the Westanother goal of the spiritual war involves the constricting or collapsing of economic and financial systems in a manner that will inevitably affect everyonepower grabs and the expansion of Ahrimanic control are happening nearly everywhere
This much appears obvious, at least to me, but when it comes to specifics, all I see is a storm of chaos. A giant ball of confusion. The second something begins to make sense, something else comes along and dissolves it all into nonsense.
The official narratives lack cohesion and clarity. The unofficial narratives often reveal more about their authors than they do about the current situation. There are as many expert opinions as there are experts. The conspiracy theories all contain massive, gaping holes of incoherence. Everything has been reduced to wild speculation or blatant dishonesty.
Whatever unified, overarching plot the Establishment may have been following - assuming there ever was one - appears to have unravelled. The various competing factions within the Establishment appear to be at each other's throats. Disjointedness and desperation are evident both in their words and their deeds.
The reigning confusion could be purposive, at least at the supernatural level. Perhaps the demonic powers are torturing their servants through various tricks and betrayals. Or perhaps they are only allowing their servants to proceed on a need-to-know basis. Whatever the case, the demonic powers appear to be keeping their henchmen in the dark intentionally.
On the other hand, the reigning confusion could be a sign of possible conflicts among the demons themselves. Or perhaps a sign of Good counteracting and thwarting evil at the supernatural level - slowing things down, buying time.
As I said at the beginning of this post, I really don't know. And there is no consolation in pointing out that no one else really knows. Everything and everyone is shrouded in fog.
Yet this confusion has led to some clarity - at least for me. The greater the disorientation in the world, the greater my own personal orientation toward the Divine. At the moment, I very much believe that the Divine does not want me to understand the details of what is currently transpiring - not because the Divine wants to keep me in the dark, but rather that the Divine yearns to defend from wading too deep into the darkness.
As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, I believe current events were initiated by evil and are being driven primarily by evil. The chaos and complexity of nearly everything happening now are hallmarks of evil. Unlike the demonic powers that seem intent on drowning everyone in chaos and complexity, I believe the Divine wishes to shield us from the chaos and complexity. Not out of any wish to keep us in ignorance, but out of understanding that knowing specifics right now might do more harm than good, at least at the spiritual level. An underlying understanding of the big picture is more important than comprehending the details.
I suppose this is where hope, faith, and love come into the picture. I have hope the Divine will ultimately prevail; I have faith the Divine will help me understand all I need to understand; and I know the Divine will do this from a position of love.
I really don't know what's going on, but I have faith that I will know what I need to know when I need to know it. On top of that, I am convinced I know everything I need to know right now.
Regarding what has already transpired, I am certain only of the following:the spiritual war has become a hot war; one that has been initiated by and is being fueled by evilevil has forced these events upon the world, which means the events themselves are not fundamentally Good.Good can arise from current events, but that still does not make what is happening now fundamentally Goodone goal of the spiritual war was the spiritual devastation of churches in the Westanother goal of the spiritual war involves the constricting or collapsing of economic and financial systems in a manner that will inevitably affect everyonepower grabs and the expansion of Ahrimanic control are happening nearly everywhere
This much appears obvious, at least to me, but when it comes to specifics, all I see is a storm of chaos. A giant ball of confusion. The second something begins to make sense, something else comes along and dissolves it all into nonsense.
The official narratives lack cohesion and clarity. The unofficial narratives often reveal more about their authors than they do about the current situation. There are as many expert opinions as there are experts. The conspiracy theories all contain massive, gaping holes of incoherence. Everything has been reduced to wild speculation or blatant dishonesty.
Whatever unified, overarching plot the Establishment may have been following - assuming there ever was one - appears to have unravelled. The various competing factions within the Establishment appear to be at each other's throats. Disjointedness and desperation are evident both in their words and their deeds.
The reigning confusion could be purposive, at least at the supernatural level. Perhaps the demonic powers are torturing their servants through various tricks and betrayals. Or perhaps they are only allowing their servants to proceed on a need-to-know basis. Whatever the case, the demonic powers appear to be keeping their henchmen in the dark intentionally.
On the other hand, the reigning confusion could be a sign of possible conflicts among the demons themselves. Or perhaps a sign of Good counteracting and thwarting evil at the supernatural level - slowing things down, buying time.
As I said at the beginning of this post, I really don't know. And there is no consolation in pointing out that no one else really knows. Everything and everyone is shrouded in fog.
Yet this confusion has led to some clarity - at least for me. The greater the disorientation in the world, the greater my own personal orientation toward the Divine. At the moment, I very much believe that the Divine does not want me to understand the details of what is currently transpiring - not because the Divine wants to keep me in the dark, but rather that the Divine yearns to defend from wading too deep into the darkness.
As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, I believe current events were initiated by evil and are being driven primarily by evil. The chaos and complexity of nearly everything happening now are hallmarks of evil. Unlike the demonic powers that seem intent on drowning everyone in chaos and complexity, I believe the Divine wishes to shield us from the chaos and complexity. Not out of any wish to keep us in ignorance, but out of understanding that knowing specifics right now might do more harm than good, at least at the spiritual level. An underlying understanding of the big picture is more important than comprehending the details.
I suppose this is where hope, faith, and love come into the picture. I have hope the Divine will ultimately prevail; I have faith the Divine will help me understand all I need to understand; and I know the Divine will do this from a position of love.
I really don't know what's going on, but I have faith that I will know what I need to know when I need to know it. On top of that, I am convinced I know everything I need to know right now.
April 4, 2020
The Benefit Of Living In A Small Rural Settlement During Lockdown
My village before the lockdown came into effect. My village after the lockdown came into effect.
April 3, 2020
April 2, 2020
This Shall Determine That - Decisiveness, Unavoidability, and Irrevocability in the Here and Now
As is the case with all of his plays, Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet drips with memorable lines that have permeated the collective conscious of our culture. For example, the line "But soft, what light through yonder window breaks?" is familiar to nearly all and inspires a twinkle of familiarity and recognition even among the gruffly uncultured and functionally illiterate. People might not know or remember where the line comes from, but most will at least confirm having encountered it somewhere before.
Of all the notable lines Romeo and Juliet contains, "This shall determine that" remains the most memorable for me. They are the resolute words Romeo utters just before he commits himself to challenging Tybalt to avenge Mercutio's death.
ROMEO This day's black fate on more days doth depend;
This but begins the woe, others must end.
BENVOLIO Here comes the furious Tybalt back again.
ROMEO Alive, in triumph! and Mercutio slain!
Away to heaven, respective lenity,
And fire-eyed fury be my conduct now!
[Re-enter TYBALT]
Now, Tybalt, take the villain back again,
That late thou gavest me; for Mercutio's soul
Is but a little way above our heads,
Staying for thine to keep him company:
Either thou, or I, or both, must go with him.
TYBALT Thou, wretched boy, that didst consort him here,
Shalt with him hence.
ROMEO This shall determine that.
[They fight; TYBALT falls]
What makes this line so memorable for me is the fierce manner in which it presents a moment of decisiveness, unavoidability, and irrevocability. To borrow from two old clichés, this shall determine that represents an ultimate instance of gauntlet throwing and Rubicon crossing. A challenge has been issued and accepted and an irreversible step to a specific course of action has been taken.
In the pivotal scene Shakespeare pits two hot-headed, young, virile men against one another in a terminal showdown in Verona's dusty, sun-baked streets. The confrontation has three possible outcomes - either one or the other or both will die. A fourth outcome - both surviving the confrontation - is no longer on the table. This shall determine that reveals the naked moment when diplomacy fails and compromise recedes - that moment when making a final stand becomes the only way forward. All other feasible options have evaporated. One either fights and wins or dies trying.
I mention this line from Romeo and Juliet now because I believe we have arrived at a real this shall determine that juncture in history. Just as the fight between Romeo and Tybalt marks a turning point in Romeo and Juliet, I believe the events of the past three or four weeks have marked a turning point in the world.
The events to which I am referring cover the entire range of experience in this world. For the first time in a long time, it very much appears that everything within the scope of existence is being chiseled down to moments of decisiveness, unavoidability, and irrevocability. This shall determine that has become and will continue to become all encompassing. Everyone and everything will be forced into a veritable cascade of this shall determine that experiences - experiences in which diplomacy and compromise cease to be effective or viable options. Experiences in which confrontation will be the only choice. Experiences in which either one or the other or both must go.
The stage is already being overrun by teams of hotheaded Romeos and Tybalts all itching to seize the moment to propel their various agendas. The hotheaded understand the existential nature of what is transpiring at the moment, and they are rushing forward to ensure they fill any void the inevitable this shall determine that conflicts leave in their wake.
Within the framework of this shall determine that environment, the spiritual becomes glaringly predominant. Whatever happens in the material world is important, but the spiritual ramifications of these material events are even more so.
That is what I am focusing on personally. I am convinced that we have already faced and will continue to face many this shall determine that moments in the here and now - moments in which we will be forced to choose and act. Moments in which we must make decisive, unavoidable, and irrevocable decisions - decisions in which the outcome may very well be reduced to three options - either we or the challenge or both must go.
Unlike Romeo and Tybalt, we must not rush impetuously into these this shall determine that challenges when they confront us, for volatility and rashness will likely lead only to tragedy. And we must recognize that many of the challenges are beyond our scope of meaningful influence. We will be spectators rather than participants in many of the events that will surely transpire. Yet mere observation can teach us much provided we maintain the appropriate perspective and understand the underlying spiritual consequences of this determining that. But in other instances, we will be compelled onto the stage, forced to meet challenges head on - and we must remember to meet these challenges with faith, hope, and love.
How we respond to our own personal this shall determine that moments will resolve everything. If we respond correctly, the resolutions need not be tragic, even if we end up being the ones who go.
Of all the notable lines Romeo and Juliet contains, "This shall determine that" remains the most memorable for me. They are the resolute words Romeo utters just before he commits himself to challenging Tybalt to avenge Mercutio's death.
ROMEO This day's black fate on more days doth depend;
This but begins the woe, others must end.
BENVOLIO Here comes the furious Tybalt back again.
ROMEO Alive, in triumph! and Mercutio slain!
Away to heaven, respective lenity,
And fire-eyed fury be my conduct now!
[Re-enter TYBALT]
Now, Tybalt, take the villain back again,
That late thou gavest me; for Mercutio's soul
Is but a little way above our heads,
Staying for thine to keep him company:
Either thou, or I, or both, must go with him.
TYBALT Thou, wretched boy, that didst consort him here,
Shalt with him hence.
ROMEO This shall determine that.
[They fight; TYBALT falls]
What makes this line so memorable for me is the fierce manner in which it presents a moment of decisiveness, unavoidability, and irrevocability. To borrow from two old clichés, this shall determine that represents an ultimate instance of gauntlet throwing and Rubicon crossing. A challenge has been issued and accepted and an irreversible step to a specific course of action has been taken.
In the pivotal scene Shakespeare pits two hot-headed, young, virile men against one another in a terminal showdown in Verona's dusty, sun-baked streets. The confrontation has three possible outcomes - either one or the other or both will die. A fourth outcome - both surviving the confrontation - is no longer on the table. This shall determine that reveals the naked moment when diplomacy fails and compromise recedes - that moment when making a final stand becomes the only way forward. All other feasible options have evaporated. One either fights and wins or dies trying.
I mention this line from Romeo and Juliet now because I believe we have arrived at a real this shall determine that juncture in history. Just as the fight between Romeo and Tybalt marks a turning point in Romeo and Juliet, I believe the events of the past three or four weeks have marked a turning point in the world.
The events to which I am referring cover the entire range of experience in this world. For the first time in a long time, it very much appears that everything within the scope of existence is being chiseled down to moments of decisiveness, unavoidability, and irrevocability. This shall determine that has become and will continue to become all encompassing. Everyone and everything will be forced into a veritable cascade of this shall determine that experiences - experiences in which diplomacy and compromise cease to be effective or viable options. Experiences in which confrontation will be the only choice. Experiences in which either one or the other or both must go.
The stage is already being overrun by teams of hotheaded Romeos and Tybalts all itching to seize the moment to propel their various agendas. The hotheaded understand the existential nature of what is transpiring at the moment, and they are rushing forward to ensure they fill any void the inevitable this shall determine that conflicts leave in their wake.
Within the framework of this shall determine that environment, the spiritual becomes glaringly predominant. Whatever happens in the material world is important, but the spiritual ramifications of these material events are even more so.
That is what I am focusing on personally. I am convinced that we have already faced and will continue to face many this shall determine that moments in the here and now - moments in which we will be forced to choose and act. Moments in which we must make decisive, unavoidable, and irrevocable decisions - decisions in which the outcome may very well be reduced to three options - either we or the challenge or both must go.
Unlike Romeo and Tybalt, we must not rush impetuously into these this shall determine that challenges when they confront us, for volatility and rashness will likely lead only to tragedy. And we must recognize that many of the challenges are beyond our scope of meaningful influence. We will be spectators rather than participants in many of the events that will surely transpire. Yet mere observation can teach us much provided we maintain the appropriate perspective and understand the underlying spiritual consequences of this determining that. But in other instances, we will be compelled onto the stage, forced to meet challenges head on - and we must remember to meet these challenges with faith, hope, and love.
How we respond to our own personal this shall determine that moments will resolve everything. If we respond correctly, the resolutions need not be tragic, even if we end up being the ones who go.
The Separation of Church and State is a One- Way Street
Bruce Charlton drew attention to a rather uncomfortable truth on his blog yesterday. The birdemic crisis has divided institutions into two stark categories: essential and inessential.
Essential institutions providing the basic necessities of life, such as grocery stores, pharmacies, banks, etc., have been permitted to stay open.
Social-distancing measures have mandated that institutions that do not provide the basic necessities of life close their doors as part of the overall effort to reduce the spread of the birdemic virus.
This led Dr. Charlton to the following logical conclusion:
Ergo: Churches have been officially classified as inessential : declared so by the government; and their inessential nature is fully-agreed (without any peep of official resistance, or even reluctance, or demand for time-limit) by the church leadership.
In other words, churches around the West have basically declared that they place material considerations above spiritual considerations. They have also shown a perplexing willingness to bow down to and obey secular authority without the slightest protest.
As Dr. Charlton points out in his post, Christian churches have basically announced that for the duration of this virus lockdown, man can live by bread alone.
Of course not all Christians have a problem with the church closures. Most regard it is a prudent measure and are keeping the faith alive at home at the personal/family level. Put another way, the vast majority of Christians are looking to ride out the storm and will be more than happy to return to their respective churches when the birdemic blows over.
But here's a question - Is that the best course of action for a serious Christian to take?
This question started me thinking about the whole notion of the separation of church and state, that is the philosophic and legal tenets that designate the political distance between religion and the nation state. The principle of keeping an arm's length underpins the entire concept of separating church and state.
As I understand it, the idea is to keep the institutions separated from each other thereby ensuring a sense of political neutrality that allows for the functioning of various organized religious institutions with the underlying insistence that these religious institutions refrain from pushing whatever religious authority they possess onto the public sphere or, more specifically, onto the secular running of the state. By the same token, the state would refrain from encroaching upon the authority of the church within the religious sphere.
Although this sounds achievable in theory, the practice of church and state separation reveals some rather uncomfortable truths. The state had abandoned its position of neutrality long before the birdemic crisis erupted and has succeeded in encroaching upon the authority of the church in the religious sphere in many meaningful and fundamental ways. Christian churches, in turn, have tended to acquiesce to these secular and material encroachments, almost without fail. Conversely, they have rarely launched any religious encroachments against the state in return.
Simply put, the separation of church and state has more or less been a one-way street of the secular state impinging upon the church and the church capitulating to the secular state.
Rather than being neutral, the secular state has proven that it is fundamentally antithetical to the church. Conversely, the church has proven it is not fundamentally antithetical to the secular state.
At a higher level of analysis, the secular state is antithetical to God. If the church understands that the state is antithetical to it and does not respond to this opposition in an appropriate manner, then what is the church's real position on God?
Christian churches in the West were presented with a real and rare opportunity when the birdemic crisis broke out. After centuries of going along with and caving into the secular state, the churches were presented with a once-in-an-era opportunity to substantiate their legitimacy, validity, and authority. Put another way, they had a chance to prove themselves to their congregations and, most importantly, to God.
And they blew it.
Big time.
The actions Christian churches have taken demonstrate one thing above all else - the separation between church and state is a sham. The church and the state are one - and in this most comfortable of unions, it is the religion of the state that rules.
State religion has decreed that man shall live on bread alone. By closing their doors to their congregations, churches have essentially confirmed the secular state's axiom.
Man shall indeed live on bread alone.
Serious Christians understand the opposite is true. Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.
Which is why all serious Christians need to question whether the mouth of God still resides within churches.
If not, then churches truly have become inessential.
Essential institutions providing the basic necessities of life, such as grocery stores, pharmacies, banks, etc., have been permitted to stay open.
Social-distancing measures have mandated that institutions that do not provide the basic necessities of life close their doors as part of the overall effort to reduce the spread of the birdemic virus.
This led Dr. Charlton to the following logical conclusion:
Ergo: Churches have been officially classified as inessential : declared so by the government; and their inessential nature is fully-agreed (without any peep of official resistance, or even reluctance, or demand for time-limit) by the church leadership.
In other words, churches around the West have basically declared that they place material considerations above spiritual considerations. They have also shown a perplexing willingness to bow down to and obey secular authority without the slightest protest.
As Dr. Charlton points out in his post, Christian churches have basically announced that for the duration of this virus lockdown, man can live by bread alone.
Of course not all Christians have a problem with the church closures. Most regard it is a prudent measure and are keeping the faith alive at home at the personal/family level. Put another way, the vast majority of Christians are looking to ride out the storm and will be more than happy to return to their respective churches when the birdemic blows over.
But here's a question - Is that the best course of action for a serious Christian to take?
This question started me thinking about the whole notion of the separation of church and state, that is the philosophic and legal tenets that designate the political distance between religion and the nation state. The principle of keeping an arm's length underpins the entire concept of separating church and state.
As I understand it, the idea is to keep the institutions separated from each other thereby ensuring a sense of political neutrality that allows for the functioning of various organized religious institutions with the underlying insistence that these religious institutions refrain from pushing whatever religious authority they possess onto the public sphere or, more specifically, onto the secular running of the state. By the same token, the state would refrain from encroaching upon the authority of the church within the religious sphere.
Although this sounds achievable in theory, the practice of church and state separation reveals some rather uncomfortable truths. The state had abandoned its position of neutrality long before the birdemic crisis erupted and has succeeded in encroaching upon the authority of the church in the religious sphere in many meaningful and fundamental ways. Christian churches, in turn, have tended to acquiesce to these secular and material encroachments, almost without fail. Conversely, they have rarely launched any religious encroachments against the state in return.
Simply put, the separation of church and state has more or less been a one-way street of the secular state impinging upon the church and the church capitulating to the secular state.
Rather than being neutral, the secular state has proven that it is fundamentally antithetical to the church. Conversely, the church has proven it is not fundamentally antithetical to the secular state.
At a higher level of analysis, the secular state is antithetical to God. If the church understands that the state is antithetical to it and does not respond to this opposition in an appropriate manner, then what is the church's real position on God?
Christian churches in the West were presented with a real and rare opportunity when the birdemic crisis broke out. After centuries of going along with and caving into the secular state, the churches were presented with a once-in-an-era opportunity to substantiate their legitimacy, validity, and authority. Put another way, they had a chance to prove themselves to their congregations and, most importantly, to God.
And they blew it.
Big time.
The actions Christian churches have taken demonstrate one thing above all else - the separation between church and state is a sham. The church and the state are one - and in this most comfortable of unions, it is the religion of the state that rules.
State religion has decreed that man shall live on bread alone. By closing their doors to their congregations, churches have essentially confirmed the secular state's axiom.
Man shall indeed live on bread alone.
Serious Christians understand the opposite is true. Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.
Which is why all serious Christians need to question whether the mouth of God still resides within churches.
If not, then churches truly have become inessential.
April 1, 2020
The Fields Are Alive With The Sound Of People
Those who have been reading this blog for a while know I like to take long walks in the fields around the village in which I live. Though I encounter the odd dog-walker or cyclist every now and then, most of the time I am the only one walking the paths and tractor roads that carve up the parcels of wheat, corn, and canola.
Interestingly enough, this has changed over the past two weeks. Suddenly, the paths through the fields are teeming with people. Where I live, teeming means one or two dozen people, but still. Having no where else to go, my fellow villagers and those from neighboring settlements are discovering or rediscovering the simple pleasure of being out for a stroll on a cool, sunny, spring day.
I wonder if this will last after life returns to some semblance of 'normal', assuming it ever does.
Interestingly enough, this has changed over the past two weeks. Suddenly, the paths through the fields are teeming with people. Where I live, teeming means one or two dozen people, but still. Having no where else to go, my fellow villagers and those from neighboring settlements are discovering or rediscovering the simple pleasure of being out for a stroll on a cool, sunny, spring day.
I wonder if this will last after life returns to some semblance of 'normal', assuming it ever does.
March 31, 2020
Secular Nationalism Is Still Leftism; Hence, Not Good
That the Establishment and their crony governments around the world would be using the birdemic as a pretext for a massive power grab is a subject I addressed several times on this blog over the past few weeks (this post provides a good overall summary of what I perceived was happening the world over as the birdemic virus began to spread). The power grabs and soft totalitarian takeovers have been in full swing ever since I published that post nearly two weeks ago.
As far as I can tell, the most blatant power grab to date has happened in the country I now call home. A couple of days ago the Hungarian government voted to grant Prime Minister Viktor Orbán the power to rule by decree with no end date.
Reactions to this ruling have been both revelatory and predictable. On the one hand, the EU and other liberal-globalist governments and organizations around the world are wailing about the death of democracy, the rule of law, human rights, fundamental values, and all the rest of it. On the other hand, those on the secular right are praising the news of Orbán's 'coronavirus coup' as a clear sign of globalism's decline in the face of rising nationalism.
The liberal/globalist reaction has been both foreseeable and hypocritical. Organizations like the UN and EU have lambasted Hungary and Orbán over backsliding on democracy, the rule of law, fundamental EU values, and human rights. These most recent protests essentially amount to little more than the liberal elite turning up the volume on the same song they have been singing about Hungary for nearly ten years. What makes the objections even more meaningless now is the uncomfortable fact that liberal/globalist governments all over the West are basically doing exactly what they are criticizing Orbán of doing. All countries in which the birdemic lockdowns have been imposed have become de facto dictatorships. The only difference between them and Hungary is this - the totalitarianism in Hungary is now de jure rather than de facto.
Secular rightists and secular nationalists appear to understand the de jure aspect of Hungary's liberal/globalist democracy-distancing and have been embracing it with open arms. Those on the secular right interpret Orbán's maneuver as a blow against the ruling progressive/liberal/globalist power structure. They also perceive it as a positive development against the Establishment, which has been using progressive, liberal, and democratic principles as a means through which to weaken nation states in order to usher in a one-world totalitarian government.
I share no accord with liberal/globalists. All liberals and globalists, whether secular or religious, are squarely rooted in Leftism; and since Leftism is so blatantly antithetical to Christianity, I cannot break bread with them.
The same holds true for secular rightists and secular nationalists. Though I am positively inclined to some of the tenets and beliefs the secular right promulgates, my affinity with them is limited by their own antithetical stance toward Christianity. To me, terms like right wing and left wing have become fundamentally meaningless.
In my view, only two realities exist here and now - you are either for God, or you are against God. Put another way, one is either religious or a Leftist. Secular rightists and secular nationalists are, obviously, not religious; hence, they are necessarily Leftitsts. Now people can pick on me all they want about faulty syllogisms and the like, but in the here and now, that is what Reality comes down to for me. Granted, rightists might be a great deal less Left than most Leftists, but at the most meaningful level they are still of the Left. At best they are the Reft or The Least Left.
This point is extremely crucial here and now, and will, in my opinion, become even more crucial in the coming weeks and months. Those who view the world from a religious perspective - more specifically from a Christian perspective - must not allow themselves to be tricked into regarding any possible secular rightist or secular nationalist gains in the coming weeks and months as being necessarily Good. Yes, secular gains on the right might include some good, but this does not immediately make them Good. We mustn't forget that secular nationalist advances are underpinned by purely material concerns. Put another way, they are prone to contain no foundation in the Divine, as Bruce Charlton points out in this must read post:
We should not be surprised if recent SJW/ Woke crusades - such as the Trans agenda, Global Warming, Western population replacement by mass migration - are simply thrown under the bus over the next few weeks and months.
The world may suddenly appear to be more (so-called) 'Right Wing'.
. . .
But this is not a good sign! - from any point of view. All it means is that the gloves are off, and the totalitarian agenda is being pursued under another and more effective justification: the Establishment posing as saviours from the masses gripped by abject fear of death.
[Establishment: You are all going to die horribly, unless you allow us to convert the world to North Korea. The Western Masses: Fine by us... Well, what are you waiting for? Get on with it already!]
The real agenda of the Establishment is not Leftism but evil . . .
This brings us back to the subject of Viktor Orbán's power to rule by decree. Well, I can tell you first hand that Hungary does suddenly appear to be more right wing, but as far as I can tell, this shift to the totalitarian right does not, as of yet, appear to be expressly rooted in the Divine.
Orbán's first official break with the liberal/globalist agenda began roughly six years ago and became rather glaring at the height of the 2015 migration crisis. At that time, Orbán touted illiberal democracy as an alternative to liberal/globalist world order epitomized by the EU. Though I supported Orbán's illiberal stance, I recognized the inherent limitations it contained.
A few years later, the Hungarian government made a rather dramatic shift in its rhetoric. Christian democracy replaced the term illiberal democracy. Orbán began to extol the virtue and necessity of Christianity and Christian culture, and indeed, many of his policies and laws - such as family support and childbirth programmes and a stance against Christian persecution - began to reflect Christian principles. It was at this time that I began to explore whether or not Viktor Orbán was in fact a real Christian leader.
Though I have found Orbán's initiatives impressive and, for the most part, Good, I also understand that purely secular governments had also enacted many of the same policies he was touting as Christian-inspired. Case in point, the former communist government in Hungary launched its own family support program and childbirth incentives in the 1970s. Yes, these too can be aligned with Christian principles, but it would be a stretch to claim that the communists were inspired to begin the programs in order to align themselves and their society with the Divine.
Secular nationalists welcome Orbán's sudden authoritarian power grab because it aligns perfectly with their own agenda. For them, there is no higher thing than nation. Any action that frees a nation from the tentacles of globalism and, thereby, ensures self-determination is viewed by secular nationalists as an ultimate good.
I accede - such actions do contain some good, but this in itself does not make them Good.
As of right now, I do not bemoan the loss of democracy because, for all intents and purposes, democracy has been hijacked and drained of all moral responsibility in nearly every place it is practiced. At best, democracy is little more than an abstraction - a cold, crushing system that offers little more than the illusion of participation in power and governance. One need look no farther than at what most Western democracies are currently doing with their trillion dollar bailout packages to understand who really runs democracy and what its real purpose is. I will go as far as to say that democracy itself is evil - that is, it has become, in every conceivable way, antithetical to Truth, Beauty, and Goodness. Thus, I shed no tears over the suspension of democracy.
Nonetheless, Orbán has used the current birdemic crisis to suspend democracy and grab power, just as nearly every other leader and government has used the birdemic to grab power. This in itself is certainly not Good. At the same time, this does not entail that leaders or governments that have not locked down their citizenry are Good by default. If that were the case, the country of Sweden - that bastion of progressiveness - is now one of the most virtuous countries on the planet.
That Orbán snatched the reigns of power on the flimsiest of excuses is inarguable - Hungary currently has fewer than 500 diagnosed coronavirus patients and a grand total of 16 deaths have been attributed to the virus. What Orbán intends to do with his newfound powers remains unclear.
I can nurture only one, faint hope at the moment - perhaps Orbán's moves have been guided by the Divine in some way. If they have, Hungary has a chance. Good can come of this.
However, if the Hungarian government's recent actions have been driven by nothing more than secular, material concerns . . . well . . .
For the time being, I am taking a guilty until proven innocent approach to the whole matter. That is, I am assuming the power grab was not Divinely inspired , which means I have become a citizen of a totalitarian, secular, right wing dream-come-true of a country.
And that, despite what secular nationalists may say, is definitely not Good.
Note added: One measure that was passed when Orbán was granted his decree was a stricter form of media regulation. The legislation allows up to five years of imprisonment for anyone who publishes false or distorted facts that alarm or agitate the public, or undermine the successful protection of the country. In light of this, I could theoretically face up to five years imprisonment for having written this post. I don't believe the government will come after me for this, but technically they could . . . but maybe that was always the case anyway.
As far as I can tell, the most blatant power grab to date has happened in the country I now call home. A couple of days ago the Hungarian government voted to grant Prime Minister Viktor Orbán the power to rule by decree with no end date.
Reactions to this ruling have been both revelatory and predictable. On the one hand, the EU and other liberal-globalist governments and organizations around the world are wailing about the death of democracy, the rule of law, human rights, fundamental values, and all the rest of it. On the other hand, those on the secular right are praising the news of Orbán's 'coronavirus coup' as a clear sign of globalism's decline in the face of rising nationalism.
The liberal/globalist reaction has been both foreseeable and hypocritical. Organizations like the UN and EU have lambasted Hungary and Orbán over backsliding on democracy, the rule of law, fundamental EU values, and human rights. These most recent protests essentially amount to little more than the liberal elite turning up the volume on the same song they have been singing about Hungary for nearly ten years. What makes the objections even more meaningless now is the uncomfortable fact that liberal/globalist governments all over the West are basically doing exactly what they are criticizing Orbán of doing. All countries in which the birdemic lockdowns have been imposed have become de facto dictatorships. The only difference between them and Hungary is this - the totalitarianism in Hungary is now de jure rather than de facto.
Secular rightists and secular nationalists appear to understand the de jure aspect of Hungary's liberal/globalist democracy-distancing and have been embracing it with open arms. Those on the secular right interpret Orbán's maneuver as a blow against the ruling progressive/liberal/globalist power structure. They also perceive it as a positive development against the Establishment, which has been using progressive, liberal, and democratic principles as a means through which to weaken nation states in order to usher in a one-world totalitarian government.
I share no accord with liberal/globalists. All liberals and globalists, whether secular or religious, are squarely rooted in Leftism; and since Leftism is so blatantly antithetical to Christianity, I cannot break bread with them.
The same holds true for secular rightists and secular nationalists. Though I am positively inclined to some of the tenets and beliefs the secular right promulgates, my affinity with them is limited by their own antithetical stance toward Christianity. To me, terms like right wing and left wing have become fundamentally meaningless.
In my view, only two realities exist here and now - you are either for God, or you are against God. Put another way, one is either religious or a Leftist. Secular rightists and secular nationalists are, obviously, not religious; hence, they are necessarily Leftitsts. Now people can pick on me all they want about faulty syllogisms and the like, but in the here and now, that is what Reality comes down to for me. Granted, rightists might be a great deal less Left than most Leftists, but at the most meaningful level they are still of the Left. At best they are the Reft or The Least Left.
This point is extremely crucial here and now, and will, in my opinion, become even more crucial in the coming weeks and months. Those who view the world from a religious perspective - more specifically from a Christian perspective - must not allow themselves to be tricked into regarding any possible secular rightist or secular nationalist gains in the coming weeks and months as being necessarily Good. Yes, secular gains on the right might include some good, but this does not immediately make them Good. We mustn't forget that secular nationalist advances are underpinned by purely material concerns. Put another way, they are prone to contain no foundation in the Divine, as Bruce Charlton points out in this must read post:
We should not be surprised if recent SJW/ Woke crusades - such as the Trans agenda, Global Warming, Western population replacement by mass migration - are simply thrown under the bus over the next few weeks and months.
The world may suddenly appear to be more (so-called) 'Right Wing'.
. . .
But this is not a good sign! - from any point of view. All it means is that the gloves are off, and the totalitarian agenda is being pursued under another and more effective justification: the Establishment posing as saviours from the masses gripped by abject fear of death.
[Establishment: You are all going to die horribly, unless you allow us to convert the world to North Korea. The Western Masses: Fine by us... Well, what are you waiting for? Get on with it already!]
The real agenda of the Establishment is not Leftism but evil . . .
This brings us back to the subject of Viktor Orbán's power to rule by decree. Well, I can tell you first hand that Hungary does suddenly appear to be more right wing, but as far as I can tell, this shift to the totalitarian right does not, as of yet, appear to be expressly rooted in the Divine.
Orbán's first official break with the liberal/globalist agenda began roughly six years ago and became rather glaring at the height of the 2015 migration crisis. At that time, Orbán touted illiberal democracy as an alternative to liberal/globalist world order epitomized by the EU. Though I supported Orbán's illiberal stance, I recognized the inherent limitations it contained.
A few years later, the Hungarian government made a rather dramatic shift in its rhetoric. Christian democracy replaced the term illiberal democracy. Orbán began to extol the virtue and necessity of Christianity and Christian culture, and indeed, many of his policies and laws - such as family support and childbirth programmes and a stance against Christian persecution - began to reflect Christian principles. It was at this time that I began to explore whether or not Viktor Orbán was in fact a real Christian leader.
Though I have found Orbán's initiatives impressive and, for the most part, Good, I also understand that purely secular governments had also enacted many of the same policies he was touting as Christian-inspired. Case in point, the former communist government in Hungary launched its own family support program and childbirth incentives in the 1970s. Yes, these too can be aligned with Christian principles, but it would be a stretch to claim that the communists were inspired to begin the programs in order to align themselves and their society with the Divine.
Secular nationalists welcome Orbán's sudden authoritarian power grab because it aligns perfectly with their own agenda. For them, there is no higher thing than nation. Any action that frees a nation from the tentacles of globalism and, thereby, ensures self-determination is viewed by secular nationalists as an ultimate good.
I accede - such actions do contain some good, but this in itself does not make them Good.
As of right now, I do not bemoan the loss of democracy because, for all intents and purposes, democracy has been hijacked and drained of all moral responsibility in nearly every place it is practiced. At best, democracy is little more than an abstraction - a cold, crushing system that offers little more than the illusion of participation in power and governance. One need look no farther than at what most Western democracies are currently doing with their trillion dollar bailout packages to understand who really runs democracy and what its real purpose is. I will go as far as to say that democracy itself is evil - that is, it has become, in every conceivable way, antithetical to Truth, Beauty, and Goodness. Thus, I shed no tears over the suspension of democracy.
Nonetheless, Orbán has used the current birdemic crisis to suspend democracy and grab power, just as nearly every other leader and government has used the birdemic to grab power. This in itself is certainly not Good. At the same time, this does not entail that leaders or governments that have not locked down their citizenry are Good by default. If that were the case, the country of Sweden - that bastion of progressiveness - is now one of the most virtuous countries on the planet.
That Orbán snatched the reigns of power on the flimsiest of excuses is inarguable - Hungary currently has fewer than 500 diagnosed coronavirus patients and a grand total of 16 deaths have been attributed to the virus. What Orbán intends to do with his newfound powers remains unclear.
I can nurture only one, faint hope at the moment - perhaps Orbán's moves have been guided by the Divine in some way. If they have, Hungary has a chance. Good can come of this.
However, if the Hungarian government's recent actions have been driven by nothing more than secular, material concerns . . . well . . .
For the time being, I am taking a guilty until proven innocent approach to the whole matter. That is, I am assuming the power grab was not Divinely inspired , which means I have become a citizen of a totalitarian, secular, right wing dream-come-true of a country.
And that, despite what secular nationalists may say, is definitely not Good.
Note added: One measure that was passed when Orbán was granted his decree was a stricter form of media regulation. The legislation allows up to five years of imprisonment for anyone who publishes false or distorted facts that alarm or agitate the public, or undermine the successful protection of the country. In light of this, I could theoretically face up to five years imprisonment for having written this post. I don't believe the government will come after me for this, but technically they could . . . but maybe that was always the case anyway.
